


Second Chances

by UndeadOutlaw



Category: Red Dead Redemption (Video Games)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-29
Updated: 2019-04-13
Packaged: 2019-12-26 04:15:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,042
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18275588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UndeadOutlaw/pseuds/UndeadOutlaw
Summary: After Abigail and John start fighting, Arthur takes you and Jack out of camp for the day.





	1. Chapter 1

Abigail and John had been fighting. Again. Most of the time she would yell at him about the stupid things he was doing, or planning on doing. But this time, it was about Jack. Her voice carried through camp with a fury, storming over to John as he and Arthur were sat at a table with Jack, talking about who knows what. Arthur wasn’t going to stick around for the verbal lashing, so he swiftly stood up, making his way somewhere John wasn’t.

“They really gonna fight in front of Jack like that?” Bill picked up his beer, taking a sip before shaking his head. “Poor kid..”. Keiran was trying his best to ignore the fighting going on, but there was no escaping it. You were all forced to listen to Abigail’s tirade towards John for his lack of involvement in Jack’s life. The fighting got exhausting. You didn’t want to hear it, hell, nobody did. Everybody had grown accustomed to it, but that didn’t make it any easier to listen too.

You couldn’t even remember what you and Bill had been talking about before the fiasco started. The three of you sat there awkwardly, listening to John and Abigail go back and forth. Bill looked over your shoulder, lifting his hand and nodding at Jack who had come up behind you. You didn’t even hear him. He had his small toy horse in hand, and he didn’t look too happy.

“Auntie..” his voice was shy. ‘”Do you wanna play with me?”

“Of course, honey!” You were naturally good with children, but Jack had a special place in your heart. Ever since he was a baby, you were like two peas in a pod. During the time John was gone, Arthur and you were more involved in Jack’s life, always there when Abigail needed a break. She was always appreciative, and reminded you that you didn’t have to watch him if you were busy, but that was never the case. If she needed help with Jack, you were her go-to. If she didn’t have the money for clothes, since Jack would quickly outgrow them, you would be the first to lend her money. Since Jack was the only kid around camp, he got bored easily. He never really had anybody to play with, aside from you, and Arthur - if he was alone. Arthur was no stranger to giving piggy-back rides, or tossing Jack in the air, as long as none of the other men were around. After all, he did have to keep up his intimidating persona. On the off-chance that you were busy, Jack would go around and mess with Uncle. It was cute watching him cover Uncle with leaves while he was asleep, though. You could thank Arthur for teaching him that.

Jack led you away from the camp, but not far enough to leave Javier’s sight while he was on guard duty. Before he ran off, he handed you his toy horse. John had given it to him after he came back. Maybe it was some sort of “apology” gift. Whatever the reason, Jack loved it. He had worn the varnish off in spots, and the base of the horse was scuffed from all the times Jack smashed in against whatever surface he was playing on.

“Wait here.” he said. Running over towards a tree, he searched for some sticks that would work well enough to be swords. If that’s what he wanted, so be it. As he ran off, you could have swore you heard a sniffle, but didn’t mention it until you saw him bring his sleeve up to his face, wiping his nose across it.

“Jack, what’s wrong?” You asked, going over and kneeling down in front of him.

“Am I in trouble?” He looked at you with tears forming in the corners of his eyes. Your heart broke. You knew what he was thinking, but felt it was best for him to tell you what was bothering him.

“Of course not, sweetie, why would you think that?”

“Cuz Mama and Pa keep fighting. I don’t like it. They always yell about me.” That was the stake in your heart. You wrapped him in a huge hug, and wiped the tears from his cheek.

“You didn’t nothin’ wrong, understand?” He nodded. “They may fight a lot right now, but it’s nothin’ that your sweet self needs to worry about, okay?”

“What’re you two doin’ all the way out here?” Arthur asked. “Been lookin’ all over for ya.”

“Auntie brought me over here so we could play swords!” His attitude had done a complete turn around at the sight of Arthur, a smile beaming from ear to ear.

“That so?” Arthur looked at you, as you stood there with your arms crossed.

“It is. We ended up talkin’ instead though.”

“Really? Bout what?” He admired the way you were with Jack. Not many people in camp could handle being around a four year old for an extended amount of time, but you were different.

“That’s none of your concern Arthur.” you joked. “Now what did you want us for?”

“Wanna head in to Valentine with me? Already got the okay from Abigail if you wanna come too, Jack.” Boy was he ready. The poor kid had been cooped up in camp for weeks. He bounced up and down in place, barely able to contain his excitement, before taking off towards the horses.

You sighed before calling out to him. “How about you let Uncle Arthur get the horses ready, while we go get our coats.”

“Okay!” he changed direction, skipping back towards camp.

As you walked with Arthur back towards camp, he placed his hand on your shoulder.

“You really ain’t gonna tell me what you was talkin’ ‘bout?”

“Hmm…later.” There was no sense is worrying him about Jack’s earlier upset now.

Arthur had your horses ready, he was just waiting on you. Jack had been talking his ear off about how he thought your horse, Ophelia, was the prettiest. She always had her mane and tail braided, and Keiran kept her well-groomed for you. You had your suspicions on why Keiran took such good care of Ophelia for you, but when you asked Arthur if he was bullying Keiran in to doing it, he wouldn’t give you a straight answer, instead he would try to change the subject.

You hopped on Ophelia, Arthur asking Jack who he wanted to ride with. Jack tapped his chin a few times, looking between you and Arthur.

“I wanna ride with you, Uncle Arthur! Sorry Auntie!” Arthur lifted the boy on to Boadicea with ease, wrapping his arm around him and placing him in front. You loved watching him do that. Granted, Jack wasn’t heavy - but Arthur was strong, and although he didn’t need to prove it, sometimes you swear he would lift things just to impress you - even after all this time. Years ago, that’s what he used to do to catch your attention. Lift things. All because you had mentioned to Annabelle that you liked a strong man. That’s when it started. He’d walk around carrying hay bales, crates, and there was even an attempt to carry multiple saddles at once. It didn’t work out well. 

Arthur had said something to Jack, which caused him to yell back at you.

“Auntie, were you watching?” Arthur shushed at Jack, and you had guessed correctly. Old habits don’t die.

—

It was barely noon when you got to Valentine, the street was busy with carriages, and there wasn’t much free space to tie up your horses on the main stretch of road. The closest you could get to the general store was near the stables, but it was fine. You hopped off of Ophelia, and had caught Jack as he slid down to you, before Arthur got himself down.

“Watch yourself, doll, I don’t trust any of these fools to be able to drive in a straight line.” Arthur said as he put his hand on the small of your back, leading to through town. Your hands were on Jack’s shoulders, guiding him around and deep mud puddles and rises formed by wagon tracks. You weren’t the one who was gonna bathe him later, and you weren’t going to give Abigail a reason to do so. For now, he needed to stay clean.

The store was surprisingly empty. As soon as Arthur opened the door, the clerk recognized him. He leaned over the counter, to get a good view of Arthur, just to avoid any cases of mistaken identity. As Arthur held the door open, the clerk stared him down.

“I don’t want you in here causing any troub-” the clerk cut himself off as you and Jack entered the store.

Arthur shot the man a piercing glare, causing him to stand back up straight behind the counter. Surely he was smart enough to realize that as long as you and Jack were around, there wouldn’t be any trouble. The clerk apologized for the confusion, even though you knew he was full of shit. He knew who Arthur was, and didn’t want to cause a scene in front of what was presumed to be his wife and child.

Jack was drawn towards the candy, which was lined up nicely in glass jars, with bars of chocolate stacked around them. Arthur had been near the counter, setting down some items that he intended to buy. Mostly alcohol and meat.

“Why don’t ya go ahead and pick out somethin’ for lunch, Jack.” Arthur leaned up against the counter, when the clerk started talking to him.

“He’s a cute kid.”

“Yep.”

Arthur never cared for small talk, so he walked away before it could get any worse. Jack scoured the shelves for canned peaches, and Arthur lifted him up so he could grab the can off of the shelf. You opted for strawberries and crackers, while picking up a few other provisions, just in case they were wanted for later.

Jack made his way back over towards the candy, and you couldn’t tell him no. You enjoyed spoiling him. Also, you didn’t have to deal with the sugar rush he would have later. That was a problem for his parents.

“Go ahead and pick somethin’ out, Jackie.” He couldn’t decide between the hard candies or a chocolate bar.

“Just go ahead and get both.” Arthur added. The playful smirk on his face said it all. A hyper child that John had to deal with? The perfect plan. Better than most that the gang came up with.

Jack immediately grabbed the chocolate bar, before showing you which one he chose. Plain milk chocolate, the bar twice the size of his hand.

“You know they got toys over here? He didn’t many have many toys, and only a few books that were too hard for him to read. There were little wooden farm animals, almost a whole set. Jack picked up the cow, while Arthur looked at the pig. The grain of the wood caused it to have an odd shaped mustache, and the nostrils where a little big.

“Kinda looks like Micah, don’t ya think?” Arthur muttered, and turned the pig around for you to see. You stifled a laugh, not wanting to Jack to hear, since you didn’t want to encourage that kind of behaviour. While Jack gushed to Arthur over the toy set, you decided to browse around some more.

Nestled in between the toys and books was a barrel full of childrens clothing. Some used, some probably new. You dug through the crate out of curiosity, and pulled out a small, pastel yellow dress that would only fit an infant. For a few moments you stared at, tracing your thumb over the lace detailing around the torso and bundling the fabric in between your fingers. Arthur looked over at you, and visibly tensed up. His hand reached for his face, awkwardly rubbing his own cheek before he traced his fingers back down around his chin.

“What’s that?” Jack asked, snapping you back to reality.

“Oh… nothin’.” You wadded the dress up, and tossed it back in to the crate.

“Can we go have lunch now? I’m hungry.” Arthur ushered Jack over to the counter, but he had his eyes on you. Before you went to pay for everything, you grabbed one of the Penny Dreadful books off the shelf, sure that it was one that Jack didn’t have. As you laid the book on the counter, Jack immediately protested, but you weren’t having it.

“I don’t like reading…it’s not fun.”

“Reading helps you become smart. There’s a lot of folk out there who can’t read. You wanna be like them?” You weren’t harsh with him, but just stern enough to get your point across.

“I…I guess not.” he shrugged.

“You don’t have to read it. We can read it together later, okay?” His cheeks perked up, and you handed him his new toys, but tucked the book and candies away in your satchel.

“How ‘bout we get outta here. Go find a nice spot ‘n have some lunch.” Jack excitedly agreed, and you nodded your head. As the shopkeeper thanked you and told you to have a nice day, you waved your hand as you walked out the door.

You hadn’t even made it off of the porch of the store before a booming voice bellowed to Arthur.

“HEY.” You turned around, only to see a large man, marching towards Arthur.

“Son of a bitch..” he muttered, before pushing you and Jack behind him. It was the same man from that bar fight a few weeks ago. The fight that Bill started, and had Arthur sent back to camp with two black eyes, a busted lip, and bruises from here to Mexico. The brute was no better off, the gash across his forehead was barely healed, and he walked with a limp.

This was the last thing you wanted to deal with, and wanted nothing more than to leave.

The brute continued to yell at Arthur. He wasn’t drunk but his words slurred and he could barely walk in a straight line.

“The hell, Arthur, how stupid did you beat him?”

“I-I don’t know!” He was genuinely surprised. Arthur had beaten a man so hard, he turned in to a simpleton.

“Jesus Christ…” you muttered.

A few men ran up behind him, trying to defuse the situation. You were there that night, but slipped out the back on the bar once the brawl started. You weren’t going to get involved, but once it ended, you made sure everyone got back to camp safely. Arthur was badly hurt, while Bill, Charles, and Javier were practically unscathed.

One of the men following behind the big guy grabbed his arm, telling him to calm down. Arthur tried to walk away, before the man called out to him.

“You see what you did to him?!” he yelled. He was angry. “You turned Tommy in to…to an idiot!” He began to approach Arthur, his hands flailing as he spoke.

Enough of this. You stepped out from behind Arthur as the man got closer, and interrupted.

“Is there something we can help you with? We have places to be and standing here bickering with you and your ape of a friend isn’t one of them.” Your hand was on you hip, the other with your hand on Jack’s shoulder, keeping him behind you.

He stuttered, and it was clear that a woman had never spoken like that to him before. The intimidation that Arthur emitted didn’t make things any better on this poor mans end, either.

“Uh..uh..” you mocked him. “Spit it out. I don’t got all day.”

You could hear Arthur exhaling heavily, trying not to laugh as you berated the man.

“Miss, I wouldn’t expect you to understand, but your husband…” You rolled your eyes. This fool was wasting your precious time. Your blood was boiling, and if Jack wasn’t with you, you probably would have punched the man straight in his throat.

“You listen to me, jackass” you said as you took a few steps closer. “What I understand is that my husband defended himself against your big, bald bastard of a friend.” You jabbed your finger in to his chest with each word.

“My husband didn’t start that fight. I was there. That big moron just came down and started swingin’. I saw it all. Including your friend getting the sense knocked out of him.”

The mans eyes were wider than you had ever seen, and he had nothing to say.

“That it?” you asked. “Anything you’d like to add?” By now, most of Valentine had been outside, watching you tear this man to pieces. Even the Sheriff had been leaned up against the wall of the bank. Must have been a slow day.

“But it was one of the guys you was with that started it!” The man could barely form the sentence without stumbling over his own words.

“Well. He ain’t here, is he?”

“N-no.”

“Exactly. We’re done.” You snarled. The grin on Arthur’s face was almost devilish, but he was happier that nothing broke out into another physical fight. You were pretty sure that the man called you a bitch as the distance between you grew, but you couldn’t care less. You angrily trudged through the muddy street on the way back to your horse, the hem of your skirt caked in filth. Arthur was right behind you, carrying Jack in his arms.

Arthur placed Jack on to the back of Boadicea, watching you as you climbed atop Ophelia. You hadn’t said anything since. What was supposed to be a fun day out was slowly taking it’s toll on you.

“Where are we goin’ now, Uncle Arthur?” Jack was surely starving at this point, so you didn’t want to go too far.

“How ‘bout down to the river? Sound okay?” Jack agreed, and Arthur hopped on Boadicea.

“Also… don’t tell your mother ‘bout that.” He said, gesturing over towards where the man were gathered. “Okay?”

“I promise!”

—

Arthur opened Jacks can of peaches, and he immediately dug in to them. That’s how you knew the poor kid was hungry - he didn’t talk. You offered him some of your crackers, at he ate those too. Growing boys.

“Want me to open yours?” Arthur asked, but you declined, no longer being hungry.

As the boys ate, you picked at the blades of grass that happened to be taller than the others.

“Auntie” Jack said as he moved to sit on his knees. “Are you and Uncle Arthur married?”

The question was out of the blue, and it clearly caught Arthur off guard. He was staring at Jack, trying to quickly chew the remainder of the jerky he had in his mouth.

“Uh…no, Jack.” He leaned down “We ain’t. Why ya askin’?” If you didn’t know any better, you’d say that Arthur Morgan was getting flustered and defensive, all over a four years old’s curiosity.

“Auntie said you were when she was yellin’ at that guy. And the man in the store thought you were married too!” You blinked a few times before biting your lip, glancing over at Arthur. His cheeks were reddening as he tried to come up with a response, but he had nothing. Jack was an attentive kid, that’s for sure. He sure as hell didn’t get that from his father.

“Um…sometimes, Jack, grown ups just…lie.” You weren’t sure how this little lesson was going to play out, but what harm could it do?

“But isn’t lying bad?” He batted his big brown eyes at you, and suddenly you felt like a monster. Were you really about to tell the kid that it’s okay to tell a little white lie?

“Well, yes…but…sometimes it’s little things that won’t hurt.” He was clearly confused.

“Like when I tell Mr. Pearson his stew is yummy?” That was not the example you were going to use at all, but he wasn’t wrong. 

“Well, yes. But maybe you should keep that one to yourself.” He giggled, before agreeing not to ever tell Pearson his dark little secret. Especially since he was the only one at camp who could cook for a huge group of people.

“When I told the man in town that Arthur was my husband, it didn’t hurt him. You see what I mean? He don’t know us. And we’ll probably never see him again.”

“I think so…” Maybe he was catching your point, because even you had no idea what you were saying.

“Wanna help me out here, Arthur?” He was stumped. Once again, he was caught with his mouth full, being asked another odd question.

“Like when I ask your Auntie if she’s okay and she tells me she’s fine when she ain’t.” Dammit Arthur.

As you stood up, you brushed off your skirt before reaching for Jack and pulling him up.

“Let’s just forget this little conversation ever happened. There some nice flowers over here, how about we grab a few and you can make your Mama one of those pretty necklaces, or we can bring some home and I can show you how to press them?”. Jack immediately took off towards the flowers, while you glared at Arthur.

“What?” he asked, genuinely not knowing why you were annoyed. He was right, you did pull the “I’m fine!” card a lot, but that probably wasn’t the best example to use. Waving your hand in the air, you shook your head before heading over to Jack. Arthur stared at you, confused, but went back to eating soon after.

—

An hour or so had passed, and you were still sitting with Jack while he made his flower necklaces. You had one around your neck, made of small white and purple flowers. He was almost done with the one he was making for Abigail, so you headed back over to where Arthur had been sitting. He was propped up against a tree, with this journal in hand. He had been looking at it for a while, so it wouldn’t have been a surprise if he was drawing you and Jack sitting down near the river. Not that you minded. It was one of the things that attracted you to him in the first place, even though he still thinks it was mostly the strong-man lifting thing. You kept every drawing he ever gave you.

“Uncle Arthur!” Jack yelled as he ran back towards Arthur, showing him a fistful of Yarrow. “Auntie’s gonna show me how to press them and I’m gonna make a…what’s it called again?” he asked, looking up at you.

“A bookmark.”

“Yeah, that!” he sat back on the ground, and you joined him, leaning up against Arthur.

“What’ve you been doing over here?” You put you arm on his shoulder, then rested your chin on your hand.

“Ah, nothin’. Just saw this pretty lady sittin’ down by the water and decided to stare at her for a while. Thought she looked too perfect I had to take a few notes.” he held up his journal before tucking it away in his satchel.

Jack reached for your bag, which was sitting on the ground. He pulled out his new book, before sitting himself down between you and Arthur.

“Are you gonna read it to us, or would like me to help you?” You asked, to which Jack chose the latter. You weren’t here to give him a reading lesson, he got enough of those from Hosea back at camp. He would still learn how to read this way, so it could be chocked up to a win.

He grabbed his chocolate bar, peeling back the golden foil before taking a bite, and you opened the book, telling him a story about a knight in a far off kingdom, looking for a dragon to slay.

—

Arthur helped Jack down off Boadicea, the kid taking off towards the center of camp, with his new toys in hand. He nearly knocked Abigail over. That was when you realized maybe you shouldn’t have let him eat all of that candy. Arthur helped you off of Ophelia, his touch lingering.

“Ya gonna tell me ‘bout earlier? With Jack?” he asked, sure that there was nobody within earshot.

“He was upset that Abigail and John were fightin’. He heard his name and thought he did something wrong.”You scoffed, while Arthur let out a breathy sigh, not surprised.

“Wish he’d step up and get it through his thick head that Jack’s his responsibility and he can’t be screwin’ around no more.”

Taking Arthur’s satchel, you mumbled in agreement before heading off to his tent to put away your belongings.

—

“Thought I may find ya over here.” Arthur was quiet, walking over with a cup of coffee in hand. On the outskirts of camp, you sat against a large rock near the cliffside, wrapped in an old plaid blanket. This is where you came to have a moments peace, if the day was too much, or you just weren’t feeling like yourself, you were here.

“Don’t go tellin’ me you’re fine this time, okay?” he said as he handed you the cup, but you didn’t answer. Arthur took a seat next to you, grunting as he bent down, a slight thud sounding as he hit the ground.

You sat in silence for a while, neither of you really knowing what to say. Instead, you held out your arm, offering him some of your blanket, giving him just enough to wrap it around him.

“It still hurts me too, ya know.” His voice was soft, gentle. He took a drag from a freshly lit cigarette, an extended exhale passing as he blew the smoke from his lips. “Never thought I’d see that dress again.” The one you found in the barrel at the store. The same one you picked out when you and Arthur were in Blackwater, soon after finding out you were pregnant. Guess the needy folk asking for donations really just wanted to resell things. It wasn’t like you had use for the dress anymore.

“I know.” It was barely a whisper, but your voice still managed to crack as you answered. Arthur took your hand in his, squeezing it it tightly. Even though you were shaky, his touch brought you ease.

“It ain’t fair, Arthur.” You turned to look at him, your eyes bloodshot from crying for what felt like hours. “What did I do wrong? Was it some sort of punishment for the shit I’ve done?”

He dug the cigarette in to the dirt, flicking the butt away towards the cliff.

“You can’t blame yourself, you didn’t do nothin’ wrong.” Neither of you looked at each other, instead, focused on the nearly set sun. “Sometimes things like that happen, I guess…”

“Why to us? To our baby?” The sadness quickly turned in to anger. The grief would lay dormant, coming forward only at the worst of times. On top of your own sadness, your heart ached for Arthur. What happened with his son all those years ago was tragic.

When you found out you were pregnant, it was all he could think and talk about for days. You swore you had never seen him so excited. It felt like yesterday, when you and Arthur had been sitting in this very spot, thinking of what to name your child. They were your chance at living at normal life, one that didn’t involve lying, thieving and murder just to get by.

Maybe you got ahead of yourselves. Maybe whatever God there was thought you were undeserving of a child at the time, and did it just to spite you. Maybe Arthur was right, that the devil was on his shoulder, and if things got too good, they were put the joy to an end on the spot.

Arthur didn’t answer, instead, he wrapped his arm around, you, pulling you in as close as he could. The sound of his heart pounding against his chest echoed in your ear as you rested against him, finally calming down.

The sun had set, and you still laid against Arthur’s chest.

“You’da been a great mother, ya know.” he whispered, feeling you stir after who knows how long. “The way you are with Jack, it’s really somethin’. He’s lucky to have you in his life.I wish John would realize just how good he has it…” The moon reflected in his eyes, the bright light from the night sky bathing him in just enough light where you could make out the gentle smile on his face. You took Arthur’s scruffy cheek in your hand, holding it there for a minute. How were you going to tell him? Be blunt? You were never one to beat around the bush, and Arthur hated when people did that anyhow.

“Maybe we might get another chance.” you said, removing your hand from his face, not wanting to see his reaction. He hadn’t caught on, instead he began rambling on about the future. Having a small piece of land with a house that was just big enough, but with room to add on if needed. Some animals, enough space for a horse pasture.

He would have kept going on if you hadn’t interrupted him. Turning back to face him, your looked him dead in the eye, repeating yourself.

“We might get another chance.” Your words came out slower this time, his stony expression quickly changing. Arthur’s head turned ever so slightly, his gaze fixing itself on the ground in front of you. His mouth cracked just enough, you could see him run his tongue over his teeth.

“Really?” he asked, a smile creeping upon his face. “You sure?”

“Really sure.” You nodded your head a few times. The somber expression faded from your face at Arthur’s reaction. “Are we ready for this? It’s only been a few months, and -” Arthur stopped you from talking by pulling you in to a kiss, your worry quickly fading.

“We’ll be alright, darlin’.”

—

It was well past noon once you finally woke. The level of exhaustion you must have reached the night before must have been something mighty, especially if you were able to sleep through the morning bustle around camp. Unsurprisingly, Arthur was gone. He mustn’t have wanted to wake you, and you never felt him get up.

You sat up, pulling on your boots, wiping the sleep from your eyes. You went over to look in his small mirror, fixing your hair into something somewhat presentable before you went out for the day. On the table Arthur must have left a few things. You reached down, picking up opened the can of strawberries, before picking up the small piece of paper folded in half. It was the drawing of you and Jack from yesterday sitting by the river as he made flower necklaces. Underneath that, was the small yellow dress.


	2. Second Chances - Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A few months after finding out you're pregnant, Arthur and you have some big decisions to make.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At first, I didn't plan on continuing this. But, I changed my mind! Thank you for the support <3

Downtime for the gang was nothing more than a distant dream. Leviticus Cornwall had ambushed some of the men in Valentine, and Horseshoe was no longer safe. This only drove Dutch to get more money, by any means.

Before he came home last night, you hadn’t seen Arthur in three days. He went off with Uncle and Charles to steal some cattle, and almost got caught in the process. They ran off and hid out somewhere north, leaving you at camp, worried sick.

Now Arthur was home safe with you, sitting on the ground, leaning up against the edge of the cot you sat on. A book in one hand, the other running through his freshly cut hair as he dozed off. Him being gone for days on end worried you, but you understood that he had a job to do.

“Arthur!” Hosea only spoke in such a tone when something was important. He startled the both of you, and it caused Arthur to jolt awake. Hosea poked his head in to the tent, looking between the both of you. “Good, you’re here. Come now, both of you.”

‘What do you think he wants?” you asked as you tossed the book on to the cot, holding out your arm for Arthur to help you up.

“I dunno, but I got a few ideas.” He mumbled. After helping you up, he wiped the sleep from his eyes and rolled back his shoulders, opening the tent flap for you to head out.

Hosea stood near the dock, staring out over the lake as he waited. There were no greetings, no small talk about Arthur’s latest job. The moment you stepped on to that muddy beach, just out of earshot from the rest of camp, Hosea spoke.

“What do ya think about this, Arthur? Being down south, pulling off whatever job we can get a hold of?”

“Well, I uh… I don’t think..”

“That’s right. You aren’t thinking at all.” Hosea shot back. He scratched at his eyebrow for a moment before moving his hands to rest above his holstered revolvers. Arthur let out a choppy exhale, not quite sure what to say, but Hosea continued. “You’ve run off on odd jobs that end up in disaster. Jobs you don’t need to worry yourself with.” Hosea turned to face Arthur, who was looking down in your direction. Embarrassment riddled his face, not wanting you to see Hosea speak to him like he were a child. “You’re going to be a father soon. You have a family you need to take care of.”

“This is our family!” Arthur sputtered. You took a step back as he began pacing around.

“Arthur, I know. But…” Hosea looked around for a moment “You need to start thinking, before it’s too late. As for you, my girl…” Hosea put his hand on your shoulder before he headed back towards camp “I suggest you think about some things, too.”

You stayed near the river for a while. Arthur tossed a few stones, the plopping noise as they hit the water drowning out the world around you. When Hosea said that there were things to think about, you knew - both of you, knew exactly what he meant. This life isn’t one for a child. He’s seen what it’s doing to Jack, how upset he gets when John doesn’t come back for days. Hosea was a father to Arthur, and he’d be damned if his grandchild had to live such a life. He knew that you and Arthur were capable of making it out, and starting over. There were times when you had tried to talk to Arthur about this situation, but he brushed you off, or told you that the two of you would talk later. If you did manage to wrangle him, he’d tell you he was busy.

Arthur wanted to be a father more than anything, something that had surprised you when he first mentioned it. Your big, bad outlaw, wanting a few kids of his own. The day you told him you were pregnant again, you had to stop him from yelling it to the camp right then and there. There were only a handful of times you had seen Arthur tear up in his life, and that had been one of them. 

“Wanna take a ride with me?” Arthur said as he stood up from the log, snapping you out of your thoughts. “I needa clear my head.”

“Alright. Mind if we stop in town first? I wanna get a few things for supper.”

“The stew smell still botherin’ ya?” he asked.

“Mhm. That and about everything else. I think it’s the venison.” The past four months, your sense of smell was unforgiving. Other than morning sickness, it was the only negative part of your pregnancy. Whenever Pearson put the stew out, you steered clear of the fire. If Arthur had any visible grime on him when he wandered back to camp, especially after hunting, Miss Grimshaw would be the first to check him out, dragging him to the river if need be.

Arthur chose to take Ophelia out, seeing how Boadicea was on the run for three days, she deserved a break. He saddled her up, and the two of you headed out for the evening.

—

Arthur took it slow, walking Ophelia from camp to Rhodes. He was steaming with irritation, the things Hosea had said really gotten under his skin. 

“Arthur, we need to talk about this.” Hosea’s words were eating at you.

“I know” he gave Ophelia a nudge to pick up her pace. “Later, okay?”

“That’s what you say every time.” You snapped back. “Not later, now.”

Arthur huffed, and pulled Ophelia off the road, deeper in to the meadow. He slid off, and stood next to you, leaning his back against Ophelia. At first he was quiet, trying to find the right words to say. It wasn’t like him to be at a loss for words. 

“We ain’t raising our baby in the gang.” His eyes never left the ground, speakingly slowly, as if he were walking on thin ice. “ I know it ain’t what you was expectin’ to hear but…I won’t do it.”

“Arthur, no, I -”

“Lemme finish, darlin’, please.” He took a breath before pulling you off of Ophelia’s back. “I already screwed up once, n’ I ain’t about to lose you or this lil’ one. I just dunno what to do or where to go once we leave, n’ I gotta take us someplace where I know you’re gonna be safe, away from this mess we’ve made.”

You kicked the ground beneath you, digging the heel of your boot in to the grass, before throwing your arms around Arthur’s neck and burying your face in to his chest. He let out a confused grunt at first, then followed suit, holding you as tight as he could. You stood in his embrace for a moment, before he pulled you off of his chest.

“Shit…why’re ya crying sweetheart?” he whispered, brushing away some of the hair that was stuck to your tear-stained cheeks, before pulling you back in.

“I didn’t think that…” you dried your eyes with the sleeve of your shirt. “I thought…shit I don’t know what I thought.”

He let out a low chuckle before resting his head on top of yours, running his hand up and down your back while you calmed down. “You really think it’s the right thing to do?”. 

Deep down you knew it would be the right decision, but it wouldn’t be easy. Neither of you had anything outside of this life. It’s where Arthur was raised, and it had been your home for many years. Between the two of you, your only belongings were the clothes on your backs, two horses, and some money that you’d tucked away.

“I know it is.” he reassured you, but it was hard when he was just as uneasy as you were.

After a while you had finally calmed down, and once Arthur made sure you were okay, he helped you back on the horse. That cloud still lingered in your mind, but it wasn’t the same. You may not know what the future has in store for you, Arthur, or the baby. What you do know it is won’t be a life on the run, one filled with danger and uncertainty.

—

You didn’t like Rhodes. It smelled like horse shit, and everybody was miserable. If there were another town nearby, you would have asked Arthur to take you there instead, but it was a luxury you didn’t have. Arthur tied up Ophelia, and gave you some money to take in the store. He chose to wait outside, so he could have a cigarette, since he knew the smell had been bothering you as of late.

The store here was so much smaller, and didn’t have half of the food selection like other stores did. No fresh vegetables or fruits, but plenty of salted meats and booze. As annoying as it was, you were starving and eating for two. Another night of baked beans and bread rolls was the plan, apparently. You paid the man behind the counter, and left.

“I see you went and got yourself a new horse, she’s very nice, looks strong too!” You didn’t recognize the man talking to Arthur, and chose not interrupt. Instead you walked around him, putting your groceries in to Ophelia’s saddlebags.

“She’s actually my wife’s.” Arthur said, annoyed that he couldn’t smoke his cigarette in peace. “This is her.” he said, pulling you closer towards him.

“You never mentioned you was married. Nice to meet you Mrs. Callahan. I’m Deputy MacGregor.” Inside you were screaming, wanting to know just what mess Arthur had gotten himself in to this time.

“I tell ya, Miss, he’s one of the best deputies we’ve had around here in a long while. Even helped us catch some pretty undesirable fellas not too long ago.”

Arthur was in for it, and he knew. You gave him the biggest shit-eating grin that you could, and patted him on his cheek a few times. “Oh, is he now? Mr. Callahan has always been…quite modest…when it comes to telling me about his endeavors.” You said through gritted teeth. Arthur chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his neck. He hadn’t told you about this; becoming a deputy in the town that the gang was working its grimy little fingers through.

“Well now, it’s nothin’ dangerous! He just mustn’t want you worry, especially with a baby on the way!”

“Yeah, that’s it alright.” he mumbled.

“A baby! That’s excitin’! When are you due?” He sure was a peppy fella. How he became the second in command of the law enforcement in this town was beyond questioning.

“In about five months.” Arthur tired to usher you back towards Ophelia a bit, but he dug this grave, and you were going to make him lie in it.

“Well, if you’re lucky, maybe he’ll grow up to be to serve the law, just like his Pa does.”

“Oh, I’m sure he will. What’d you say your name was again?” You asked MacGregor, but before he could answer, yelling and a few crashes rang out from over near the train station.

Two men on the front steps were getting in to a brawl. “Guess we better go break it up, huh partner?” MacGregor said. Arthur and you exchanged a look, one that told him just how angry you really were. You stayed with Ophelia, not wanting to get too close to whatever that mess was. All you could hear was that one of the men was drunk, and tried stealing some luggage. The drunkard tried to take a swing at Arthur, but missed. He stumbled over his own feet, and fell through the doors that led back inside the train station.

About ten minutes later, Arthur came out of the doors with the drunk slung over his shoulder. He yelled for you to walk Ophelia over, just so he didn’t have to carry the guy all the way down to the jail for the night.

“Oh, looks like he gave you plenty of trouble, didn’t he, honey?” You said sarcastically. Arthur gave you that look as he tossed the man on Ophelia’s back, while you handed him the reins.

“He sure did, sweetpea.” Arthur bit back. His mistake.

“There’s been a lot less trouble since he’s been acting as one of our deputies ma’am. Sheriff Gray really seems to like him. Those friends of yours too. Hoagey and…I can’t remember the other fellas name.” MacGregor said as he led you to the jail.

“I bet that’s right…” you mumbled, just loud enough for Arthur to hear.

Arthur took the drunk off of Ophelia’s back, and took him inside the jail, while you waited outside. Arthur didn’t stay inside for too long, but when he came out holding a wad of folded bills, you knew what this was all about. Money.

—

Arthur tried to avoid eye contact with you as he helped you up on Ophelia, knowing damn well he was about to get the verbal lashing of a lifetime. He was safe, until you got to the outskirts of town.

You hadn’t known about whatever this was. Arthur was a deputy now? Not only was he pretending to be the law, he was pretending to be the law in the middle of a blood feud between two old, powerful families. To make matters worse, it appeared that he had unintentionally chosen a side.

“Tell me whose idea this was.” You demanded. You hadn’t been this angry in a while. There was just a hint of force behind your statement, but it was overshadowed by disappointment. Arthur didn’t need to hide this from you, but you wish he had never gotten involved.

“It’s a long story darlin’.”

“It’s a long walk back to camp.” You retorted.

“Fine…” he grumbled. “Me, Hosea and Dutch was out and we found Trelawny in the back of a cart headin’ off for jail. We got stopped by a train and Dutch decided to talk to the sheriff. Well the rest of them boys in the back broke free ‘cause the sheriff was too stupid to notice what they was doin’. Then Dutch made me run off n’ catch the bastards.”

You bit your lip and nodded your head, taking in everything Arthur had just told you. “When was this?” You asked.

“’Bout two weeks ago or so.”

“You mean when you came home and told me that you were all bruised up ‘cause your horse bucked you off?”.

Arthur didn’t immediately answer. He knew you were angry and disappointed, but if he didn’t come clean now, things would only get worse. “I didn’t want you worryin’.”

“All I do is worry about you, Arthur!” You exclaimed. “But now it turns out you’re in the middle of some stupid fight between some families, and you’ve been hiding it from me? Do you know how dangerous this is?!” The anger in your tone was washed over by your voice breaking. Arthur tried to defuse the situation, but it was hopeless.

“We thought it was best that…”

“We? We who? Dutch? Hosea? The ones who got you in to this mess?”

“Sweetheart, I’m sorry.” He was exasperated at this point, as were you. “They didn’t want you worryin’ either, ‘n -”

“Just…take me home.” You murmured while wiping a few stray tears from your eyes. You had enough for one night.

—

You didn’t even give Arthur a chance to stop Ophelia before you slid off her back and stormed your way towards the tent that you and Arthur shared. Hosea had been tending to Silver Dollar, and tried to greet you as you walked past him, but it was to no avail.

“Something happen out there?” He said to Arthur, worry painted on his face, more so than usual.

Arthur rubbed his hands over his face in frustration, before looping his fingers around his belt. “We talked ‘bout some stuff, n’ things was alright for a while. Then we got to Rhodes that moron Deputy saw me n’ he had to come over, start talkin’. That’s when she came outta the store n’ it all went to hell.”

“She found out about your new job, I take it?”

“Mhm…” he grumbled. “She ain’t too happy ‘bout it. Thinks it’s too dangerous.”

“She isn’t wrong, my boy.” Hosea added. “What else did you talk about? Before the Deputy came over?”

Arthur didn’t answer, instead he gave Hosea a look, one that he didn’t need to explain. Hosea gently nodded, before turning back to Silver Dollar, while Arthur walked in to camp.

Exhaustion hit you hard, and you weren’t sure how long you had been asleep. Everyone in camp was still awake, so it couldn’t have been too long. Maybe that nap was something you really needed, since you were no longer frustrated from your earlier conversation with Arthur. You sat up from the cot, and turned on the oil lamp that he kept on the hide-covered table. In the small mirror he kept next to the bedside table, you caught a glimpse of yourself. You looked worse than you felt, your hair in shambles, with strays flying here and there. The bags under your eyes would tell people that you hadn’t slept in a week.

Just as you began to pin back the fly-away hairs, that small voice rang from outside your tent. The one that could make your attitude do a complete turn around whenever you heard it.

“Auntie are you up?” his hand was smacking against the centered pole that held the tent up.

You opened up the tent flap, and Jack immediately let himself in. He went over to the table, with an opened can of baked beans in one hand, and the chunk of bread in the other. “Uncle Arthur said you might be hungry since you were sleepy when you came back.” He placed the food down, and gave you the sweetest smile.

“Did he now? I’ll have to thank him later.” Of course Arthur would try to butter you up, and he used one of your biggest weaknesses - Jack.

He sat down on the cot, his legs dangling because he was too short to reach the ground. “Did you have fun in town?” he asked. “Me, Mama, Lenny and Miss Grimshaw went a few days ago and I saw a some pigs.” he said excitedly.

“Well that sounds like it was fun.” you said as you sat next to him. “Did you see any other animals?”

“There was a donkey! He was as big as me, and on the way home I saw some more pigs but they were really big and ran away.”

“Oh sweetie, those were boars. You wanna stay away from them. They can get pretty mean.”

“Oh, okay.” he said. “What do they do?”

“They can use those big ol’ tusks of their to dig around and hurt folks pretty bad. But that’s all you need to know, okay kid?” you ruffled his hair, and scrunched his nose, but laughed.

As you and Jack were talking, Arthur stood in the tents opening, just listening for a minute. He had a slight smirk on his face. He always loved how you and Jack were together, but he was even more excited since soon he would have his own kid, one who would do the same thing someday.

“You mind if I talk to your Auntie for a lil bit alone, Jack?” Arthur asked. Jack happily agreed and jumped off the cot.

“Before you go honey, can you hand me that?” you pointed towards the food he had brought you earlier. Jack walked over to the beans and bread handing them both to you before quickly making his way out of the tent. You held the bread in one hand, about to take a bite, when you noticed there was already a small bite missing. “Jack…” you teased “Did you take a bite of my roll?” He smiled, and ran off, closing the tent flap behind him.

“He’s a little stinker.” You said with a grin, while eating a spoonful of beans.

“He gets that from John, that’s for sure.” Arthur took a seat next to you, kicking off his boots and placing them at the foot of the cot.

“You think ours will be anything like that?” You asked.

“Like a Marston, or a stinker?” Arthur chuckled as he untucked his shirt and undid the buttons. “Well however they end up, I hope they won’t be as stupid as their Pa thinkin’ they can hide somethin’ from you.”

“You ain’t stupid.” you said, giving his arm a nudge while you scraped the bottom of the can, getting the remainder of the sauce out.

When you were done, he took the empty can and spoon from you, and placed it underneath the cot. Arthur laid back, leaving you enough room to lay next to him. He laid his arm out for you to use as a pillow, while he wrapped his free arm around you. “I’m sorry ‘bout earlier.” He whispered while nuzzling his face in to your hair.”I wanted to show ya somethin’…” he rolled over just enough to pull a piece of folded up paper out on his back pocket. “I found it when me n’ MacGregor was in the train station.” he said. “You know I ain’t one to believe in signs or nothin’, but here.” He unfolded it, and handed it to you.

“Black Bear Ranch?” your eyes went from the paper straight to his.

“Yeah, says it’s, north of Annesburg. It ain’t too far. Whatcha think?” he took the paper from you, and tossed it on the floor behind him.

You smiled before giving him a kiss. “I think the sight of you as a ranch hand would be one to behold.”

Arthur laughed, and pulled you back in to his chest. He made sure you were comfortable before adjusting himself. You rested your head back on his arm, while his hand rested on your belly. He gave you one more kiss, before the both of you drifted off to sleep.

—

For once, all the chores were done before noon, and there was a bit of free time to be had. You had been watching Jack play with Cain, while Arthur scribbled down a few things in his journal. From the looks of it, it was a checklist, but you didn’t bother to ask.

“Arthur!” Dutch boomed from across camp as he sauntered over, with Hosea right behind him. “We need to head in to Rhodes. We have a meeting with Leigh Gray.”

With his back still turned to Dutch he rolled his eyes before tucking his journal away. “Sorry darlin’ I’ll be back soon, alright?” He said as he kissed the top of your head.

“Don’t do anything stupid!” You demanded, looking at Arthur, then Hosea.

You were a little disappointed, since you didn’t think he’d be leaving again, but soon you wouldn’t have to worry anymore.


End file.
